On Wednesday morning, one of our cameramen at CSN caught up with Gio Gonzalez and Mike Rizzo at a charity event for diabetes. Both Gio and Rizzo addressed the renewed allegations of Gonzalez' connection to the Miami-based clinic Biogenesis.

Also, here is a list of local baseball players expected to be taken in this week's MLB Draft:

Local baseball players likely to be picked in MLB draft

Every year the Mid-Atlantic region produces a fair share of MLB prospects, especially Virginia which boasts one of the best college baseball programs in the country in the University of Virginia Cavaliers. This year there is no Ryan Zimmerman or Danny Hultzen, a prospect projected as a top ten pick, but there is significant depth. The Commonwealth once again has plenty of potential draft picks with Maryland chipping in a few as well.

Here is a look at local products expected to be drafted with their rankings in Baseball America’s top 500 list:

From the state of Virginia:

34 – RHP Connor Jones – Great Bridge HS (Chesapeake, Va.)

Virginia’s 2013 Gatorade Player of the Year, Jones is committed to play for Brian O’Connor and the Cavaliers in Charlottesville. He’ll have to decide if he wants to go pro or to college.

54 – 3B Chad Pinder – Virginia Tech

Pinder is a versatile hitter with a .321 average, 11 home runs, and 62 RBI for the Hokies in his junior year.

Eric,On my Mac I have to go to full screen to get the video to play right (including sound). No idea why, but that's how it works. You're not missing much, however, if you can't get the sound, because neither of them says anything.On the other hand, I'm just back from my gym where every TV on the wall (about a half dozen) included some mention of the BioGenesis story. Even the stations that were focused more on conspiracy theories or too skinny supermodels ran at least a short baseball segment this a.m. Most, of course, highlighted Alex Rodriguez and Ryan Braun, but much of the focus was on the sport's continuing PED problem. And while I think that stats (mainly runs/game) suggest that baseball has gotten a handle on the problem, it's clearly still there. Sad. Very sad.

"And while I think that stats (mainly runs/game) suggest that baseball has gotten a handle on the problem, it's clearly still there. Sad. Very sad."I was only obliquely aware of everything that went down with Sosa, Bonds, et al, but it seems to me that MLB is *much* more proactive about it now. While that doesn't speak to the fact that an unhealthy culture seems to persist in this regard, it does make me think that it won't be the stain on the MLB that it was before.But, maybe MLB was just as aggressive back then as they are being today (suing for documents to get more info, etc).

I think MLB needs to stop with the axe hanging over heads. They need to act or shut up. If they are investigating, then there should not be leaks of any kind. When they are ready then act. This just cannot be a threat hanging over teams as the season goes deeper. If there are going to be suspensions then do it so that the teams can adjust. This situation just cannot be a factor in the post season. They must consider the timing. Maybe all the suspensions start at the beginning of next season. If they cannot figure out how to keep a lid on things, ask Rizzo how to do it.

Re-posted from old thread:Section 3,Your comment on Willingham seems off to me. First, no reason to think that it would take a couple of hot prospects to get that done. It certainly didn't cost the A's that. He isn't an all star and the Twins would undoubtedly like to move his salary.The idea that the Nats don't need him is somewhat hard to even comprehend. They need bats in the worst way. Championship caliber teams have good hitters on the bench. And it should be clear by now that he would have to start a bunch. Picture what the Nats were trying to get out of Moore. They would actually get that out of Willingham and then some and would be able to let Moore go down and get better.If Willingham is too expensive, then find someone else. The idea that you should continue to roll with a bench full of hitters struggling (or flat out failing) to get to the Mendoza line is silliness. You can't tell me there aren't better players available that would not cost you a fortune in prospects.

Teheran's no-hitter is through 5 innings. Wandy Rodrgiuez exited with a forearm injury and the Pirates blogs are going over nuts that they fear yesterday's loss was the type to send their season out of control once again. Sounds like they believe in some Curse.

IMO JZim was definitely off his game early on (lots of 3-ball counts, including at least one 3 – 0, a walk, a hit batter, etc. But, as with the Os through 6, he battled through it and remained effective.And, happily, unlike against the Os, he pulled it together beautifully by the 4th or 5th and I'm no longer worried there's something going on with him.

From last thread:I've just read through this string and am having trouble. There seem to be a lot of comments about various missing persons, and expressions ranging from "good luck wherever he goes, "good riddance," and "I sort of liked him, he deserves another chance." But sometimes I can't figure out if people are talking about Espi, Henry or Peric. Too funny. I was thinking posting something along the same lines.Oh, and add in the mixed responses to comments such as: "I'd welcome him back if he straightens out his attitude."

baseballswami said… So about JZim– 8 innings, 4 hits, 1 walk, right about 100 pitches. He thought he was wild. Really. You have got to love a guy with that kind of standards.Amen! What a great anchor to the staff right now!And add in (from my oddities, this morning) — it's been over a year since he's lost a game at home.

TexNat, Fair enough. The "couple of hot prospects" wasn't my idea, it was in the original post, and I was just following that to answer what was probably a rhetorical question, but well. And while he is playing the outfield for the Twins now, they don't have Span (anymore), Werth, Harper (in a couple of weeks, inshallah), or even Bernadina, so he'd be on the bench, and not in Tracy's seat even. While I think Tyler Moore should have been in AAA for his own good a long time ago, I don't think Willingham's RH DH bat is worth, as the question posed, Danny Espinosa plus a couple of hot prospects. Thus my response. Could they use him if it were just a matter of money? Maybe. His slash now is .218/.362/.441, but he's got 10 HRs, mostly in April but some lately. My 2¢.

This kid Blake Schwartz down in A ball is also dealing.Think about last night's hits. 2 of them were questionable. Also did you realize on the triple down the line that the runner would have been out at 3rd if Ryan held on to the ball. It actually came out of his glove and rolled under the baserunner.

Also did you realize on the triple down the line that the runner would have been out at 3rd if Ryan held on to the ball. It actually came out of his glove and rolled under the baserunner. Although it still would have been a two-run double, unless LaRoche had been playing the line, where the last two ground balls had gone. But that's a little SWM-Mick-ish of me, isn't it?

Eric @ 1:32 p.m.,No, baseball was not as aggressive 'back then' as they are today. It's hard to do the subject justice in a paragraph or two, but both MLB and the player's association turned a blind-eye toward the problem. Books have been written on the subject — not that I've read them — but a lot of the willful ignorance had to do with trying to recapture fans after the aborted 1994 season. The notion was 'fans dig the long ball' and who was going to stand in the way of challenges to both Roger Maris's and Hank Aaron's records? People can differ on the reasons behind the eventual clampdown (such as it has been), but I saw it as a function of both baseball becoming embarrassed at the over-the-top nature of the new records plus various federal (and state?) investigations of PED salesmen that kept turning up ballplayers among the clients. But by the time MLB and MLBPA began to cooperate, the 'steroid era' had produced a lot of suspect stats/records and an even more problematic erosion in fans' trust (think bicycle racing, but maybe not quite as bad). A lot of that trust has been regained (if not re-earned), but I fear the BioGenesis revelations could (and probably should) cause renewed cynicism about MLB's drug-testing program. I assume that whatever sort of informal plea bargain MLB has struck with Mr. Bosch involves him explaining how he and his clients were able to fool the testing system. We'll see.

Fair enough, Sec. 3, I enjoy the discussion.Agree he would not be a starter when the starters are all healthy. But they aren't and maybe won't be for awhile. Also, given Werth's age, and Harper's aggressiveness, there will likely be future starting opportunities. Also, I generally think that Werth should take frequent rest so the Nats can get value out of him for as long as possible over his long contract.On the whole, I guess my point is that having a good bat as a fourth outfielder is an important thing for any team, and most especially this one. Given that the Nats don't even have a half-way decent bat filling that spot right now, I think its incumbent on Rizzo to go get one, assuming he can find one that doesn't cost you an arm and a leg from a prospect perspective.

I assume that whatever sort of informal plea bargain MLB has struck with Mr. Bosch involves him explaining how he and his clients were able to fool the testing system. We'll see. I don't believe he gets to bargain with MLB. I think that's the DA's job.

Sec 3 @ 2:09 p.m.,There does, in fact, seem to be a 'plea bargain' of sorts (hence my use of the term 'informal') with MLB. If ESPN is correct, MLB has agreed to drop (or not file one) a civil suit hey had threatened if Mr. Bosch cooperates fully. There were also some other elements to the deal (maybe that's better term), including putting in a good word with the federal/state authorities and some reference to covering any civil suits brought against him by players (I assume for ratting them out?).

Fair enough, Sec. 3, I enjoy the discussion.It's a new day for the Nats, and a new era for NI. Vigorous disagreement expressed in a civil, even friendly manner. The clouds are definitely lifting!While I think getting the Hammer back is a stretch, Tex does raise a good point — how can the Nats expect to catch the Braves when the three of their four bench bats are batting under .160 and the fourth is a light hitting, though clutch, guy with an OPS under .550. The Braves have Gattis or McCann coming off the bench, along with Reed Johnson and, now that Heyward is back, Jordan Schaffer. Even their backup infielder, Pena, has an .884 OPS in 91 PAs. No wonder we're seven games back. By the way, when I looked up Gattison on B-R the sponsor of his page had a great quote:"Evan Gattis is two things. He's a catcher who hits bombs, and he's a key piece in the war on bad baseball nicknames. Can you imagine an alternate universe where his nickname is "Gatty" instead of "El oso blanco"? That would be awful."

Okay, I'm not a lawyer. Deal, arrangement, agreement, settlement — call it whatever you want. But the point is that Mr. Bosch is not doing this out of the goodness of his heart. And my hope remains that the negotiations produced not just the naming of names and confirmation of receipts and records, but also some real insight into how he and his clients seemingly succeeded in fooling MLB's testing system for a few years. .

Wonk — the other thing about JZimm yesterday was that his final pitch count was 71 strikes, 30 balls, 101 total. So 70+% strikes despite all those early 3 ball counts you noticed.While he hasn't lost at home since May 2012, he did have a home meltdown not unlike the one against the Os — the one home loss in the August-September series vs. the Cards. Gave away 4-0 and 6-2 leads in the first three innings and didn't lose despite giving up 8 runs only because the Nats took him off the hook with 3 in the bottom of the 6th. So he is sometimes prone to those kinds of meltdowns — maybe especially late last year as he got past his former 2011 career high of 161 innings pitched. Hopefully it will continue to get rarer the more seasoned he becomes.

2 things, 1 im kinda of sad no one from my school is on this list considering they beat the team with the kid going to texas, and won state's (virginia) last year, and are in the semi's this year oh well, 2 whatever happened to ramos, and when can we expect him back

MLB did suspend outfielder Jordan Schafer based on “non-analytic” evidence in 2008. Outfielder Rick Ankiel was suspended in 2007 based on evidence that he purchased human growth hormone, though he did not test positive for any PEDs.I'm curious, do we have anyone on our roster that has been suspended? I know we had Pudge and Mike Morse, and I didn't know about Ankiel.

"And I believe JaneB was making a pretty good joke by saying it seems wrong that a no-hitter can include a "hit" by pitch. I know I chuckled."OH!::: snicker :::"Thanks Eric, I'll have a Bud."I'll need the link to the NIDO

I think "the Clean-up Man" would work, 'cause, you know, he was a janitor and all. And maybe he could use "Clean-up Woman" for walk-up music. Or not.222 quoted…"Evan Gattis is two things. He's a catcher who hits bombs, and he's a key piece in the war on bad baseball nicknames. Can you imagine an alternate universe where his nickname is "Gatty" instead of "El oso blanco"? That would be awful."

As for the JZim discussion. I also thought he was a little less perfect last night- more balls, walked one ( gasp!). But the you look up and it' a the seventh or eighth and there he is and the team is in the game. Every single pitcher has a horrible game once in a while, even guys like Verlander and Kershaw. I am not good at finding stats but he had to be right up there in fewest pitches thrown per inning. Honestly , I will look at the tv and say- how can it be the seventh already? And he will be at like 85 pitches. I think last night was about 100 for 8 innings. Usually the nights you get to bed on time!,

Last night was 101 pitches for JZimm. The two runs were unearned. Of course, one of them happened as a result of a man reaching base on what many of us sitting around me thought was an error by Jordan at first base. It was ruled an infield hit. Then that runner got to second on an E3, which made the run he eventually scored unearned.Jordan was not brilliant in the field last night. But it's true: he did the job through eight innings.

"Sneaky Eric, but you had it backward. The Drink Owe-er is the left hand column. I already owed you one. I fixed it for you. :-)"Thanks! If I were sneaky I wouldn't have mentioned my "confusion" in the thread .swami, agreed 100% on JZimm. I'm just glad he got stronger as he went rather than continuing to struggle a la the Os game.Even if JZimm has two or three outings this year similar to the Os game, and otherwise he pitches like last night and like in other starts, I have to think that would make for an outstanding season.

Maybe I have it wrong but it appears that Gio's story has changed. Initially, he said his name appeared because his father went there to buy weight loss products. Gio's name appeared on the list because he probably paid for his fathers's purchase. But, now the scenario has changed, I think. Gio now appears to be saying…..I am innocent because I only purchased items which were not on the banned list. If I have it right, this doesn't look good and he could end up with a suspension. That would be the final nail in the coffin of the Nats 2013 season.

And for those worrying where Josh Willingham would play if we freed Willy from Minny, don't worry about it. Harper-Span-Werth have played probably 15 games as our starting outfield. Somebody is always hurt; as is Willy. He could be our RH power against tough lefties when Davey could sit the Kid. Plus, I bet if Willy played 50 games with 200 at-bats for us, he'd hit 15-20 homers.I say Free Willy. Let's get the band back together.

phil – Gio's statements and the evidence have always been slightly misaligned in somewhat unsettling ways…."Rizzo pushes panic button through a wall,Johnson pulls new lineup out of hat, Nats win."lol, I like it.

JZim start last week I believe was an anomaly Eric. He was suffering from heat exhaustion and needed to be pulled. With this new bullpen, that probably wouldn't have happened and he leaves winning 6-2. Bad luck + bad timing. He is amazing.

@Phil Dunton:I read it the same way too. Gio's story is moving around like his fastball on a bad night. I'm worried too. But baseball is so slow in moving on this, it'll probably be August before they ever issue suspensions. If we play July-August like we did April-May, it would be moot by then.

Re the Pudge discussion: This is a perfect example of the pernicious legacy of the entire steroid era — some players were using and caught, some were using (and suspected of using) but never caught, some were suspected but may not have been using, yet are labelled users, etc. And, of course, some players never used and suffered in relative terms.

For whatever reason there doesn't appear to be evidence against Gio so we can think what we like, in the end you are iinnocent until proven guilty.But I hope they nail Braun and his lawyers to the wall.

Tony Bosch singing like a stool pigeon. How can you believe a thing. He is trying to save his butt and could easily lie. MLB wants their pound of flesh. Gio probably did lie. Not smart as the story wasn't adding up. But I don't think he did anything wrong but poor judgment.

"I read it the same way too. Gio's story is moving around like his fastball on a bad night."Did Gio now openly admit getting legal substances? Is that in the video or a quote somewhere? If he said that in the video, then I have to disagree that there's nothing meaningful in it…that would be a huge reversal from the early days of his denials.

@Phil Dunton:I don't see that the two posited scenarios are exclusive and therefore changing the story. if he is on record as saying that he purchased items for his father and not for himself, that does not contradict stating that he purchased items that were not on the banned list. Am I understanding your point incorrectly?

"Gio probably did lie. Not smart as the story wasn't adding up. But I don't think he did anything wrong but poor judgment."If lying is the only slip up he made here, it was exceptionally boneheaded. The only reason I can think of for doing it is in hopes of avoiding outright the stain of being affiliated with Bosch/Biogensis in any way whatsoever.

I wish we could finally rid ourselves of the ped problem. In the next CBA they might just approve missing a full season. Right now I think this has something to do with MLB wanting to finally get Braun, who they feel wriggled free and made them look silly. Do you think hitting is down because of the stricter enforcement?? I really hope they settle this sooner rather than later.

Ghost,You shouldn't believe what Mr. Bosch is saying on it's own, without supporting evidence. But if Mr. Bosch is confirming contemporaneous evidence — receipts, prescriptions, notes, phone records, other individual's testimony — then his testimony has some meaning and usefulness. As a former boss of mine once told me — in a much, much different context — we deal with sleazy characters all the time in law enforcement, intelligence, diplomacy, etc. The key is recognizing that they're sleazy and taking what they say (or promise) with a grain of salt. But you have to deal with them sometimes if you want to address certain problems, whether it be solving a crime (think Mafia informants), trying to end a civil war (think Slobo Milosevic), or encouraging someone to spy for us (remember, they're committing treason against their own government). Liars abound in the steroids world; if you don't work with some of them you won't get to the bottom of the problem.

Here is the Biogenesys deal as I see it: Tony Bosch figured he is probably in the clear until baseball sued Biogenesys. This wasn't going to put him in jail because it's not a criminal charge but it was going to put a large hole in his pocket book based on large lawyer bills. Tony decided to play ball with MLB in order to rid himself of the legal costs and Baseball is dying to prove that it has turned the page and wants to rid the game of drugs (they are particularly interested in nailing a big fish like ARod and/or Braun). The union and their lawyers will go hard after Bosch's credibility and they will appeal all the suspensions so unless Baseball has corroborating evidence this is not over by a long shot.

As far as Gio is concerned. I like the guy a lot both as a character and a player and I love his compete level but I have a really hard time buying the notion that a baseball player buys legal supplements from Tony Bosch. GNC would be a more reasonable destination.